Towns Without Rivers by Michael Parker

 

Reka Speight and her brother Randall are determined to see more of the world than their rural town of Trent in Eastern North Carolina.  Born into a poor family with a mother who died early, siblings who grew up and moved right into Trent adulthood and an alcoholic father, these two of the children yearn for something more.  Life isn't easy and Reka has just emerged from a five year prison sentence.  She stood by while her wealthy boyfriend overdosed and his father demanded justice.  Reka didn't have any money and her defense was minimal so she ended up with the blame for the man's death.

Now that Reka is out she is willing to do anything to move on.  When she is offered the chance to go out to the Midwest to sell books door to door she jumps at it; in the early 1960's this is still a viable job.  She does this for a while then continues drifting, ending up in Montana.  In the meanwhile, Randall has gone to Norfolk to live with an older brother and work in the shipyards.  But he yearns for Reka and although he doesn't know exactly where she is, Randall hits the roads determined to find her. Reka finds love along the way but it isn't an uncomplicated situation.  Will Reka and Randall find each other again and will they make their way out of poverty to find happier lives?

This is Michael Parker's second novel and it is a great one.  Parker is a writer who deserves a much wider audience and is local to me, working and writing at the University of North Carolina Greensboro.  I've read almost all of his novels over the years and have never read a bad one.  His strength is character portrayal and those in the South will immediately recognize Reka and Randall as true representations of those found in the region.  He uses these two characters to explore what makes life worth living and the struggles most of us have reaching a satisfactory life.  This book is recommended for readers of literary fiction.